Website Accessibility Scanning
How do I start a website scan?
Navigate to Scan > Web Scan, enter the full https:// URL you want to audit, choose the crawl depth, browser engine, and any saved scan profile, then select the start option. You can watch progress under the live queue and jump straight into the report once it finishes.
Which engines power the audits?
DAC-A11y drives Playwright-powered browsers (Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit) to exercise each page, then layers Axe-Core rule sets and our own heuristics to flag WCAG issues. This mirrors real user journeys while keeping the analysis deterministic.
What should I look for in the report?
Every website report highlights totals by severity, the affected pages, and remediation guidance for each finding, including the WCAG citation and helpful code context. Work on critical and serious issues first, then revisit the report to confirm fixes.
How long do scans take?
Runtime depends on the number of pages, site performance, and the engines you pick. Small marketing sites finish in minutes, while enterprise portals with deep navigation can take longer. The History view keeps timestamps so you can monitor throughput over time.
What happens if I paste a document link?
If a target URL resolves to a document, we reroute the job through document remediation automatically. You will see the new entry in Documents > History with the same status updates you receive for file uploads.
What's new with deep scans?
Deep scans submitted this week automatically route through our Azure Container Instances queue. We capture a run ID up front, enqueue the job, then stream the full crawl back into History once the worker completes. This keeps long-running crawls off the web host while giving you a consistent status trail.
Why are export checkboxes disabled sometimes?
Auto-download exports (Excel, Word, PDF) now apply only to immediate single-page scans. When you toggle Deep Scan or schedule a run, the export options hide because those reports are delivered after completion from the History view once the queued crawl has finished.
How can I track a single-page scan while it runs?
The Web Scan form now surfaces active single-page jobs with live status updates (Queued, In Progress, Exporting, Complete). Keep the page open to watch progress; once it flips to Complete you can open the report directly from the banner or from History.
What happens if I start the same single-page scan twice?
To cut noise and duplicate load, identical single-page submissions for the same URL and engine are de-duplicated. If a matching job is already queued or running, we reuse the existing run and show you its status instead of spawning a duplicate.
Scheduling & History
How can I schedule a scan?
Open Scan > Web Scan, expand the Scheduling panel, and pick either a one-time or recurring option. Choose the start time in your local timezone (we convert to UTC) and confirm. The run is queued automatically.
What happens to scheduled deep scans?
Scheduled deep scans now mirror the on-demand experience: the scheduler queues the job inside Azure Container Instances, marks the schedule as “Queued”, and posts the finished run back to History. You can still reschedule or cancel while the job waits in the queue.
Can I cancel or reschedule?
Yes. Inside the Scheduled Scans table you will find Cancel and Reschedule actions for every future run. You can adjust the next start time as long as the job has not begun processing.
Where do I review upcoming and past schedules?
The Scheduled Scans section lists every run with its cadence, next execution time, and status (Running, Completed, Failed, or Paused). Use it as a single view for both active and historical schedules.
Where do I see finished results?
All completed website scans and document jobs land in History. From there you can download the report package, export to PDF or CSV, or spin up a new scan using the same parameters.
Document Remediation
How do I check a document for accessibility?
Go to Documents and either upload a local PDF, DOCX, PPTX, XLSX, or image, or paste a direct document URL. Uploads enter the queue immediately, while links are fetched in the background before remediation begins.
Which formats are supported?
DAC-A11y handles the formats teams use most:
- PDF files with full tagging support
- Microsoft Office documents (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- High-resolution images for OCR and description generation
What does the document report highlight?
Reports call out missing alt text, heading issues, untagged regions, reading order concerns, color contrast problems, inaccessible tables, and missing document language. Each item includes a recommended fix.
What if the linked document is unavailable?
If the source host times out, blocks the download, or returns an unsupported file type, we mark the job as failed and send an alert. You can retry or upload the file directly once it is available.
Plans & Billing
How do I subscribe to a plan?
Visit the Pricing page, review the plan tiers, and choose Subscribe or Get started. Checkout is processed through Stripe and supports all major credit cards.
Can I change my plan later?
Absolutely. Open Account Settings > Billing and select Manage subscription to upgrade, downgrade, or switch to annual billing. Changes apply immediately with prorated charges on your next invoice.
Can I buy one-time credits?
Yes. Credit bundles (100, 250, 750, or 2,500 pages) are available from the Pricing page. Credits activate as soon as payment clears and supplement your included monthly allowance.
How do I view invoices and payment history?
All receipts live under Account Settings > Billing. Download individual invoices or export a full statement anytime.
What happens if a payment fails?
We notify you by email and retry the charge automatically. If retries exhaust, premium features pause until you update the payment method and the next attempt succeeds.
Is there a trial option?
New workspaces can run a limited free scan. For broader pilots of Pro or Enterprise plans, reach out through the Contact page so our team can tailor access.
Security & Data Protection
How do you handle customer data?
We limit data collection to what is required for scans and remediation, encrypt it in transit and at rest, and never share your content with third parties without explicit consent. Our Privacy Policy details retention windows and opt-out controls.
Are my scans and documents private?
Yes. Reports and remediated files are scoped to your workspace, and only authorized DAC-A11y support engineers can access them for troubleshooting. We do not use your assets to train models.
Where are uploads stored on the server?
Uploads are written under App_Data/UploadedFiles in the site content root when the host is writable. If that path is read-only, the app now falls back to Path.GetTempPath()/DAC.AccessCheck.A11yForge/UploadedFiles and logs a warning so operators can provision persistent storage. Both locations follow the same retention rules and cleanup routines.
What security controls are in place?
We combine encryption, role-based access controls, regular vulnerability assessments, cloud hardening, and ongoing employee training to keep your environment secure.
Violation Definitions Legend
PDF Violations
PDF.Document.MissingStructTree: The document is not tagged, making it largely inaccessible to screen readers.
PDF.Page.MissingStructParent: A page is missing a parent in the structure tree, breaking the reading order.
PDF.Image.MissingAltText: An image is missing alternative text, so its content is not available to visually impaired users.
PDF.Document.MissingLanguage: The document's primary language is not specified, which can confuse text-to-speech software.
Word Violations
Word.Image.MissingAltText: An image is missing alternative text.
Word.Paragraph.MissingHeadingStyle: Text that looks like a heading is not formatted with a heading style, preventing proper navigation.
Word.Table.MissingHeaderRow: A table is missing a designated header row, making it difficult to understand data relationships.
Word.Document.MissingLanguage: The document's language is not set.
Excel Violations
Excel.Image.MissingAltText: An image on a worksheet is missing alternative text.
Excel.Table.MissingHeaderRow: A table or sheet is missing a designated header row.
Excel.Sheet.MissingName: Worksheets should be clearly named for navigation and bookmarks.
Excel.Document.MissingLanguage: The workbook's language is not specified.
PowerPoint Violations
PPT.Slide.MissingTitle: A slide is missing a title, which is essential for navigation and understanding the slide's purpose.
PPT.Image.MissingAltText: An image is missing alternative text.
PPT.Table.MissingHeaderRow: A table is missing a header row.
Web Page Violations (Axe-core)
image-alt: Images must have alternate text.
color-contrast: Elements must have sufficient color contrast.
heading-order: Heading levels should only increase by one.
link-name: Links must have discernible text.
button-name: Buttons must have discernible text.
area-alt: All areas of an image map must have alternative text.
document-title: The page must have a title that describes topic or purpose.
html-has-lang: The <html> element must have a lang attribute.
label: Every form element must have a label.
list: Lists must be structured correctly (using <ul>, <ol>, and <li> elements).
td-headers-attr: Table cells must use the headers attribute to associate them with header cells.
Account & Support
How do I update my account information?
Open Profile after signing in to update your name, email address, or password. Changes take effect immediately across the workspace.
Who do I contact for technical help?
Submit a ticket from the Support page for troubleshooting, report questions, or feature requests. Our response time targets are posted there as well.
What if I am not signed in?
You can still reach us via the public Contact form. Include your organization name and the issue summary so we can route it correctly.